The Difference Between Being Nice and Doing Good.

Why start the Just Be Nice Project? What is it all about? Being nice seems like a great premise for a business, but what does it mean?

The answer is relatively simple, we started it because at the end of the day, the simplest way for people to start making positive change in the world is to Just Be Nice. Not only through grand gestures, when it suits them, but to everyone, as often as possible.

Being nice is step one. Just be nice each day, wave when you’re let into traffic, smile and say thank you when you get your coffee, help your friends when they need a hand. Just Be Nice.

If everyone was nice, all the time, the world would be a much better place to live. Consistency is more important than intensity. It should become habit, so if you remember the time that you were nice, you are probably not being that nice.

Doing good however, is a slightly different proposition. Everyone can achieve the same level of being nice, because it’s about what you do. However, the truth is; not everyone can do the same amount of good.

Doing good is about helping others. Doing good is less about what you do and more about what happens for the person getting help.

In medical terms, being nice is the bedside manner. It is important, and it helps, but all the bedside manner in the world won’t cure a disease.

Doing good is treating the illness, and moving people from sick, to well.

Bedside manner, caring about those who are sick, and being nice, can be done by people with good intentions. People who want to hold hands and emotionally support people during tough times.

Treatments however, require hundreds if not thousands of people contributing to research and development, billions in equipment, infrastructure, hospitals, research facilities, studies, medicines etc. Each time we treat or cure a disease, it’s because people have dedicated their lives and skills to the cause.

In addition, the people who administer the treatments spend years at school and university to be able to treat these patients. The Doctors, nurses and support staff, are able to do more good as a result of their effort, training and support infrastructure.

The Just Be Nice Project is about bringing the two together. Bringing together the best of the big hearts, the caring and emotional support that humans need so badly, as well as bringing together the best in infrastructure and expertise to deliver ‘cures’ and ‘treatments’ to the disadvantaged. To facilitate the necessary long-term research and results driven testing to find the best ways to deliver people an equality of opportunity.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t just matter how much someone cares, you cannot ‘care’ someone better if you do not have the skills or resources to treat them. It also doesn’t work if you simply give someone a treatment, and not consider the fact that humans need more than some logistical boxes ticked to help them move from disadvantage to an equality of opportunity.

Philosopher Bertrand Russell said, “The good life is one inspired by love, and guided by knowledge”. We agree. Without love we lack the impetus to care enough to acquire the knowledge for the good of others, but without the knowledge we are just bundles of misguided, ineffective intention.

“The good life is one inspired by love, and guided by knowledge” B. Russell

 If you want to be nice, it is simple. Show compassion, pay attention, be empathetic, be nice to everyone you can, including people doing it tough. If you want to do good, take the time working out the best way to do that. Starting by understanding what you really excel at, then speaking to us about what things you could possibly do that make sense for your skill set. At the JBNProject, each day we bring people and organisations together, using their skills to do good, not just be nice. It’s the long way, and it takes time, but all good solutions take time, infrastructure and support. Building long term sustainable programs, we determine best practice to comprehensively move people from a situation of disadvantage to an equality of opportunity.

Remember, it starts with being nice, as close to all the time as you can!

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